Laundry Room Walls

Our laundry room also doubles as a pantry, which makes it a bit tight in there. There is one big wall on the back, but with the depth of the room, visually, it didn't make sense to put any art work on it.

So I enlisted the help of my eldest daughter. She has a bit of a creative streak too.

I originally ordered an aqua chalkboard paint, from Hudson Paints, "Aqua Girl". They have 30 different colors. 

After a bit of a color scheme change in the house, I had to tweaked it a bit. It was a bit bright for me now. I tinted it and warmed up the color. Though it is still not quite where I want it. 

(You may see a navy blue chalkboard wall soon)

Ashlyn helped me paint the walls. 

Ashlyn designed some frames on paper, and I painted them all on the wall.  We use these for fun quotes, or grocery lists.

The wall in this room has a slight texture, an orange peel. You can still paint chalkboard on a surface like this. The chalk may not write as crisp and clean as it would on a wall that has been floated out, but it does the trick.

If you have a heavier texture than this, you will need to float out the wall. You can give it a shot with a couple passes of joint compound. Sand in between coats. If you do this, a primer first is ideal. It will suck up your paint more, so plan on at least one more coat of chalk board paint.
I am the most impatient painter, so I know the layers sound a bit much. But you'll be glad you did later.
Hire a professional if it sounds like to big of an undertaking.

Two coats of this paint is best, let them dry completely between. I just used a latex white for the frames, and painted her designs. It is meant to look like chalk, so I used only one coat, and didn't worry about the unevenness, or brush strokes.

If your child drew something out, that you wanted to put on the wall, that may be a bit more detailed than you are able to paint?  Borrow a projector from the local school. Although they may be harder to track down these days than you think. You also may be able to find them on Craigslist for under $20.

This is a great way to enlist you children in the decor...and you can paint over it at any time :)